American Movie Musicals Collection, Volume 1 (West Side Story / Fiddler on the Roof / Guys and Dolls) (3-DVD)

Starring: Natalie Wood; Frank Sinatra & Topol Director: Robert Wise; Jerome Robbins; Joseph L. Mankiewicz & Norman Jewison

DVD Features:

Audio:

Disc 1: WEST SIDE STORY - Single Disc Version

Disc 2: GUYS AND DOLLS

Disc 3: FIDDLER ON THE ROOF

Product Description:

FIDDLER ON THE ROOF: Ukrainian milkman Tevye clings desperately to the old Jewish traditions while all around him the world changes, day by day. His three daughters marry men he considers more and more unacceptable, and the ruling Russian government's anti-Semitism threatens to drive him from his home. Based on the enormously successful Broadway show with great performances and unforgettable songs. Academy Award nominations: 8, including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor--Topol. Academy Awards: 3, including Best (Adapted) Song Score.

GUYS & DOLLS: Based on the Broadway show adapted from the short stories of Damon Runyon, and filled to the brim with Frank Loesser tunes such as "Luck Be a Lady" and "Sit Down, You're Rocking the Boat," this outrageously comic film, which features Marlon Brando's bold musical debut, is a colorful tale about gamblers, a feisty Salvation Army lass, and a dance-hall girl with a pining heart. Veteran gambler Sky Masterson (Brando) takes a bet from Nathan Detroit (Frank Sinatra) that he can win the affection of a "soldier" (Jean Simmons) in the Salvation Army, setting himself up to lose both his money and his heart. Romance is the last thing the gambler and the missionary expect, and they fight against their attraction for all they're worth in glowing singing and dancing numbers. Love proves to be contagious as spicy dancer Miss Adelaide, in a role recreated for the screen by Broadway showstopper Vivian Blaine, is determined to get her fiancé, Nathan, to the altar one way or another. Stubby Kaye and B.S. Pully also reprise their stage roles in this glorious Cinemascope film that earned four Academy Award nominations. GUYS AND DOLLS consistently ranks among the most popular film musicals of all time.

WEST SIDE STORY: Considered one of the greatest musicals of all time, WEST SIDE STORY earned director Robert Wise an Oscar for Best Director as well as nine other Academy Awards, including Best Picture. Realistically portrayed characters and their surroundings, and expert editing complementing innovative dance sequences, mark this highly stylized modern-day Romeo-and-Juliet tale. The stage is set in New York's Upper West Side in the 1950s, where the area's slums are plagued by racial tensions embodied by two rival gangs: the Puerto Rican Sharks and the Caucasian Jets. In the middle of this mess is young, innocent Maria (Natalie Wood), a Puerto Rican seamstress whose brother, Bernardo (George Chakiris), is the leader of the Sharks. Despite the warnings of Anita (Rita Moreno), Bernardo's fiery girlfriend, Maria falls in love with a young, hopeful Polish boy, Tony (Richard Beymer), who used to belong to the Jets, now headed by Riff (Russ Tamblyn). When Tony, on Maria’s urging, tries to stop a rumble between the gangs, tragedy ensues, interrupting their passionate love affair with violence and desperation. The infectious and lyrical landmark score by Leonard Bernstein and Stephen Sondheim rounds out one of the most satisfying musical experiences ever captured on film.

Plot Keywords:

Classic | Essential Cinema | Family Interaction | Gambling | Gangs | Jewish Heritage | Love Story | Love Triangle | Love Triangles | Musical | Musicals / Music Videos | New York City | Passover | Romance | Romances

Cast and Crew: